Missiles

From DarkSpace WIKI

- 1st Lieutenant Gira Banks, on spending minutes attempting to evade a swarm of Ion Tracker missiles in a scout

Once humanity discovered the benefits of sticking some fins on a rocket-propelled cylinder, little was it realized at that point what an incredibly devastating weapon it would prove to be long after they traveled to the stars.

Missiles are a long range weapon, used by dedicated missile ships to support direct combat ships in battle by raining fire from afar. They have a wide area of effect detonation and are well guided, although smaller ships have less trouble than bigger ones.

Although powerful, most ships can't hold a very large amount and are expensive energy wise to maintain firing for a long period of time. as such, the ships they are on tend to be vulnerable to close range attacks as missiles have a minimum firing and detonation range.

Contents

Missiles

Human Missiles come in three tiers;
Tier 1 are the smallest missiles and usually equiped on Frigates or even Corvettes.
Tier 2 the medium one's to be found on Destroyers and Cruisers.
Tier 3 missiles are the largest and are designed to be wielded by Dreadnoughts and Stations.
The Tiers scale in power and range but are typically found on ships dedicated to their use due to their high energy costs.

During the Stellar Conflicts, there were always weapons that people would sell to the highest bidder.

And thus, the first of these weapons, the Interceptor-class Anti-Radar missile, was procured. Sold eventually and still regularly to both human factions, the Anti-Radar missile is an old favorite of Frigate captains and an old enemy to enemy destroyers. Speedy, lightweight, and incredibly hard to detect, this low-payload missile is hard to shoot down and even harder to dodge, making it the bane of Destroyer captains everywhere.

Even though it's payload is considered the lowest of all the missiles, this is merely in comparison - it's still an extremely powerful shaped charge that has claimed more than one over-confident pilot. This Interceptor-class missile has the lowest range of all the missiles, but it's also the least energy demanding. Like all the missiles, it is fired in an arc designed to avoid nearby friendly targets.

This missile is ammo based, and can be switched with both the Peregrine missile (100 resources, 0 tech) or the Sparrow missile (110 resources, 10 tech.) It is available to both human factions.

The second of the first new Interceptor-class missiles that were sold to both human factions, the Peregrine missile is the definitive missile for a balance of speed, range, and power. It is useful equally well both against both large and small capital ships, providing a tremendous amount of damage with a favorable amount of range and maneuverability. These traits combined make an excellent anti-Cruiser weapon, though Frigate captains are advised to not draw their attention, as Cruisers are notorious for being devastating against smaller picket ships.

This weapon is ammo based, and can replace bother the Anti-Radar Missile (88 resources, 0 tech) and the Sparrow Missile (110 resources, 10 tech), at any available allied world. It is available to both human factions.

From the same independent manufacturer that developed the original Anti-Radar missiles, the Sparrow was the name of the first of many new missile designs that were sold to both human factions.

The Sparrow missile belongs to the Interceptor class of missiles, and is used by Frigates as an anti-capital ship weapon. Featuring the heaviest payload of all the Interceptor class of missiles, this weapon also comes with the farthest range. Designed to punch straight through armor, the area damage of this weapon isn't nearly as noticeable as it is with the larger missiles available, but its still noticeable enough to cause extreme damage.

Fitted mostly on stealthier ships, the missile fires in an arc, designed to be fired around ships and other objects. At a cost of its heavy payload however, it is the least maneuverable of the Interceptor-class missiles.

This weapon is ammo based, and can replace both the Anti-Radar Missile (88 resources, 0 tech) and the Peregrine Missile (100 resources, 0 tech), at any available allied world. It is available to both human factions.

While attempting to recreate the success of the Anti-Radar missile, it proved an impossible task to mask a higher payload on a Tier-2 missile. Undaunted, independent manufacturers settled on a high payload missile that was just as accurate, and the Raptor was born.

First overlooked by UGTO captains in favor of the more devastating Phoenix missiles, the Raptor proved to be a valuable asset for their ships when one adventuresome captain decided to outfit a missile cruiser with Raptor class missiles. Undaunted by the jesting of such a weak choice, this captain successfully defended against a squadron of Heavy Cruisers that the Phoenix missiles has trouble reaching. The superior maneuverability and speed of Raptor missiles proves time and again to the surprise of many to be an effective counter to smaller capital ships, and with its heavy payload far outstripping its Tier 1 counterparts, manages to repeatedly proves its worth as an anti-picket weapon.

This T2 missile has the lowest range of all T2 missiles and the lowest damage, but makes up for it with its massive advantages in speed, accuracy, energy management, and ammo capacity.

This weapon is ammo based, and can be switched out for the Ion Tracker missile (200 resources, 45 technology) or the Phoenix missile (225 resources, 50 technology). It can be found on all allied worlds, and is available to both human factions.

After the success of the Anti-Radar missile, independent manufacturers eventually released a more powerful version intended for Destroyer and Cruiser class ships. Dubbed by both human factions as Tier 2 missiles, the Ion Tracker missile was the first of these. Named after its homing mechanism in which it targeted the ion trail left by ships engines, the IT missile has been an old standby missile for countless years. Due to how quickly and easily they are both built and deployed, large amounts of these missiles were fielded by ICC in particular, who needed a less expensive approach to fighting capital ships. The inexpensive IT missile is what began the ICC's eventual shift towards larger and more powerful missile boats.

Featuring an excellent balance of power, maneuverability, and range, the IT missile is a powerful warhead to be deployed against both medium capital ships and ever feared Dreadnoughts. While not as maneuverable as its Tier 1 counterparts, it still manages to hit home time and again against foolish ships that stray too far from a picket escort.

This weapon is ammo based, and can be switched out for the Phoenix missile (225 resources, 50 technology) or the Raptor missile (175 resources, 45 technology). It is available on allied worlds and to both human factions.

With the success of two new Interceptor-class missiles, the same independent manufacturers began designs on improving the Ion-Tracker missile as well, and before long, the first to be released and sold to both factions was named the Phoenix missile.

Being the most powerful medium missile to ever be fielded by UGTO or ICC, capital ships initially didn't have the armor or hull capability to withstand more than a few salvos before being forced to retreat, and the brilliant glow of the missile's high powered nuclear explosions gave credence to its namesake. Being able to drill directly into then feeble armor plates allowed its tremendous amount of force to nearly obliterate any armor with little effort. It wouldn't be long however before the armoring was improved, and while not as powerful as before, they still deal an incredible amount of damage, and over an area.

These missiles feature the greatest range and damage of all T2 missiles, but suffer from extreme energy requirements as well and poor maneuverability and lower ammo capacity. Use wisely against larger targets, as they are easily shot down by picket ships.

This weapon is ammo based, and can be switched out for the Raptor missile (175 resources, 45 technology) or the Ion Tracker missile (200 resources, 45 technology). It is available to both human factions on allied worlds.